here is my first attempt at creating a kalidescope from a snapshot. Still working out the bugs on my angles.

this is the original snapshot

That is beautiful!

I was just in a local scrapbooking shop the other day and saw some kalidescopes that people had made. It started me wondering about doing them in Photoshop.

Care to share how you made this one?

Ohhh - way too cool!! Yes, please share how you did this! (Like I need something else to play with! ;) )
Jeanie

thank you for your kind comments.


The HI-TECH equipment I used was a coffee filter and two paper clips. I folded the filter into 1/8s. Next I cut out one of the wedges created and used it as a template paper clipped over my photo. Then I just 'extracted' the wedge....and flipped it to make a mirror image.

then it was just a matter of copy and paste on to new image. Each wedge had to be rotated then placed in the proper position.

here's a pic of my hi-tech equipment.

there is probably an "official" way to make this in PS, but my skills are pretty limited. Hopefully they'll improve after I take a class next month.

That's it???? I would have thought you were using a special program or fancy filters in Photoshop to create that. That is soo cool. Thanks for sharing it with us. I love the way they turn out. Can't wait to try it myself. :D
DJ

Originally posted by DJ Dubovsky
That's it???? I would have thought you were using a special program or fancy filters in Photoshop to create that. That is soo cool. Thanks for sharing it with us. I love the way they turn out. Can't wait to try it myself. :D
DJ

Dang! I'm headin' for the coffe cupboard right now!

That is just cool!

I don't drink coffee... :bawling: Regardless, there should be a way to do tihs in PS - let me think about it...

Jeanie

Even if you don't drink coffee, you should just be able to make a circle from a small plate or something, fold as directed, cut out the section and scan with virtually the same results...

I think the neatest thing about it is that it's completely LOW tech... What a hoot! I would never have guessed! :lol:

Nope - I'm determined to go high tech all the way!!! :D (Though usually when I don't have a clue what I'm doing, it's pretty much brute force - so probably not worth a tutorial. :( )

Jeanie

I think I've used up my playtime for today. :( But, I did come up with a kaleidescope using one of Lisa's market pics. My method was MUCH to crude to post here (I had to use my math skills - but even those led to some necessary touch-up - I just don't understand how my math turned out wrong. ;) ) I will try to refine my method though and see if I can make it possible for others to follow. (Heck, for all I know, there's probably already a tutorial out there making it REALLY easy!! Maybe even an action.)

Jeanie

I ran across someone in my internet travels who was doing something like that with flower pictures he had. While this method you guys have done involves more segments and is way cool, this one looks similar and is probably a whole lot less complicated and time consuming (for those whose play time is limited!)

You take your image and find the halfway point (helps if you resize or crop it to something easily divisible by two) using the ruler (VIEW/RULERS). Then make a marquee tool selection to that point from the edge. Copy and paste.

Take that new layer and duplicate it, flip it horizontally (or vertically, depending on which way you "cut" the original) by 180º and slide it over to the halfway point. (helps if you turn off the original whole image in the background, or throw it away because you're done with it now)

Copy and paste this new half-image and flip accordingly.

I went as far as to do it with two images and use blend modes to combine them, and then tossed it on my "cool but of-what-practical-use" pile. I am probably not imaginative enough to see a practical use for this in everyday "life", but I have it if I ever should be able to see it.

:wavey:

cool, those are some really interesting techniques!! I'll have to try them out.

- David :)

sjm -- your invention is nifty, and your creations are truly beautiful! But you're depriving me of my excuse to buy another add-on! :( It's gotta be marketed as a "Magic Kaleidoscope Tool" -- only $9.95 if you call in the next 10 minutes!

Blackknight - your technique results in lovely images also!

Jeanie,

I love your veggie kaleidoscope creation! It's so colorful! This looks like fun. Now I want to play too!

-T

I used that technique but divided the image into 1/8s. Works MUCH better and faster.

Found a websites that might be useful.

Making a "kaleidoscopic" image in Adobe Photoshop:

Site 1 (http://www.photoimagenews.com/kaleido.htm)

-T

Okay here is my attempt. What a lot of fun it was to create.

-T

What is it about kaleidoscopes that fascinate us, I wonder? Maybe remembering our childhood. Maybe just seeing the patterns and colors. Regardless, the're fun to look at AND fun to make!
:wavey:

Blacknight and T,
Thanks for the Action links. These things turn out so pretty I bet they would make great patterns or styles too.
DJ

SJM,

I love the tulip kaleidoscope photo you created. What a lovely effect and such striking colors.

-T

:)

sjm - your kaleidescope is positively BEAUTIFUL!! Wow! :)

T Paul - yours is much more subtle (well, perhaps compared to sjm's, anything is "subtle" ;) ), but still a beautiful one. Thanks for the links - a slightly different approach than what I came up with, but the same result. :)

Blacknight - I tried that action. The author is right that it only works on SOME photos. I couldn't get it to work on any of mine, so I'm wondering what the qualifications are for the photo it will work on. :(

I'm still trying to figure out how I can put my process into an action. I'll let everyone know if I actually figure it out.

Jeanie

Originally posted by jeaniesa
sjm - your kaleidescope is positively BEAUTIFUL!! Wow! :)

Ditto that sentiment! Just incredible!

Just having too much fun with this kaleidoscope art.

-T

Boy oh boy this thread keeps getting prettier and prettier. I love seeing all the pics you guys are making. Stunning violets T.
DJ

WOW T!! :D I LOVE those colors.

I really feel like a kid in this thread - absolute awe at the beauty of things seen through a kaleidescope! :)

Jeanie

I decided to try a slightly different starting point for a kaleidescope. I started with the watercolor of the chilies that I did yesterday and came up with this. The result isn't as vibrant and it has a much "softer" feel to it than starting from an actual photo, but it was an "experiment" - one that I'd like to explore further.
Jeanie

Oops - hit "submit" rather than "browse". :( Here's the image.
Jeanie

Jeanie,

I really like the watercolor effect with the kaleidoscope. And I really like the "soft" appearance. Well done.

-T

OKay, I had to do just one more....this kaleidoscope stuff is addictive. I've decided to use mine for some greeting cards to send to relatives.

Here's one more to look at.

-T

Okay...just one more ;)

I just figured out how to make the more complicated ones. Unfortunately I didn't use a very colorful photo. Perhaps next time.

-T

OK. these kalidescopes are just too much fun!...and addicting! My family is threatening an intervention!

Love the note card idea! Any other suggestions for these interesting images?

You think birdwatchers might be interested in my blue bird eggs?

Maybe Christmas ornaments? UUUMMMMM!

Personalize photographs?

Originally posted by sjm
Personalize photographs?

I'm actually getting ready to offer that kind of service, and am considering this Kaleidoscope idea to add to my original one.

I have some frame shops that display samples of my work to refer their clients to. I'm getting ready to approach the owners and see if they want to collaborate on a "turn your favorite photo into a painting" idea.

Now I'm thinking it could be "painting or kaleidoscope"....

sjm,

I love the birdnest kaleidoscope! What pretty blue eggs and such a nice balance of colors. It would make a wonderful print!!

-T

T Paul - I'm glad you tried a more complicated version (meaning smaller angles, right?) I've been thinking about that too. I think that photos with smaller "pieces" would lend themselves better to the more complicated ones, since a large pattern in the photo might just take up the entire wedge and not be interesting at all. Definitely somehthing to play around with! When I get some time, I think I'll try one with 8 sections and one with 12 from the same area of a photo just so I can see the difference.

sjm - I LOVE that blue egg one! I don't think you have to limit your market just to birdwatchers! ;) It's just plain beautiful! :D

Jak - I would definitely offer kaleidescopes as an option. Everyone I've shown them to are just blown away with how beautiful they are. (In fact, I get more comments about those than I do about my paintings. What's the deal with that? ;) )

Jeanie

Well, I've been playing around with trying to write an action for creating a kaleidescope. My problem is that I want it to be ultimately flexible - which I think I'm discovering doesn't lend well to actions. But, since I've never created an action before, it could just be that I don't have a clue!

My thought was that if I could get a 1/8 pie wedge selection shape, then I could move it wherever I wanted allowing for infinite possibilities per photo. My problem is that I haven't figured out an automatic way to then take the wedge and align one of the long straight edges either vertically or horizontally. So, I have to leave that to the user. Plus, I haven't figured out a way to move the pieces automatically AND precisely given that any given wedge is a different size than when I recorded the action.

So, perhaps this isn't really worth being an action, since most of the precision work still has to be done by hand. But perhaps I just don't know enough to make it work the way I want to. If anybody has any great ideas, I'd really appreciate some feedback.

This was created in PS7, but I think it should work in earlier versions. Feedback on that would be appreciated too.

Jeanie

P.S. Jak, please don't post this in your action thread yet since I don't think it's ready for "prime time". ;) I'll let you know when it is.

6/12/02 - To reduce confusion with the various versions I've posted, I've removed the attachment to this poist. Please see this post (http://www.retouchpro.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&postid=22053#post22053) for the latest version.

Of course, while working on the action, I created a thousand kaleidescopes. (Well, perhaps maybe not quite that many, but it sure felt like it last night at 2:00am!)

So, I thought I'd share one. This was created from a photo that I took of my flowering Kalenchoe plant (which I've since discovered is poisonous to cats, so it's now found a new home. :( )

Jeanie

You kids are having way too much fun in this thread.

And that's a good thing, as Martha Stuart would say.

Jeanie:

For those of us still back in the PS 5, 5.5 world, how about converting your action to a text file and posting that as well. If you don't recall the obscure technique, here's a link to a thread where the keyboard shortcut + menu choice is detailed. (http://www.retouchpro.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&postid=8342&highlight=action+text#post8342) See the first paragraph.

BTW: PS7 has a new feature called a "Scripting Engine," which should enable one with the applicable programming smarts to craft this type of thing to any degree of precision and variability. It will be interesting to see to what degree "script programming" moves forward.

Thanks for sharing your .ATN -- and to the rest of you for sharing your Magical Mystery Tour art!

~DannyR~

Jeanie,

Absolutely stunning! Great colors and such a beautiful pattern! Outstanding job as usual.

-T

Thanks for the nice comments T! :D

Danny, I should have thought about the text version myself. Sorry about that. Here it is.

Wow - the Scripting Engine. I hadn't even THOUGHT about that. I thought I was doing well to figure out actions! ;) Guess I'm going to have to dust off the cobwebs in the part of my brain that used to do programming and check that out. That might have to wait for a couple days though. I'm WAY behind on "work". :(

Jeanie

6/12/02 - To reduce confusion with the various versions I've posted, I've removed the attachment to this post. Please see this post (http://www.retouchpro.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&postid=22053#post22053) for the latest version. (The text version is included in that attachment.)

OK, I reworked the action after I had the bright idea of trying to move/transform the image rather than the selection. Makes it a LOT easier, though perhaps a little less flexible. In any case, there's only a couple of stops in this one and no "fine tuning" needed once the action gets going. Seems like this will be a LOT more usable (at least for me)!

Again, created in PS7. This time I've included the text file of the action in the zipped file.

Jeanie

6/12/02 - To reduce confusion with the various versions I've posted, I've removed the attachment to this post. Please see this post (http://www.retouchpro.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&postid=22053#post22053) for the latest version.

I sent the action file to my sister, who has never used an action before, and I'm happy to say that she successfully ran the action and was very happy to have a new toy to play with. ;) She's running PS6.

I'll see if my husband will let me load PS5.02 on his machine and I'll try to redo the action for earlier PS versions.

Jeanie

Hi Jeannie

Thanks for working on the kleidoscope action. I just downloaded it and tried it one time using ps 7.0. It is really cool and I can see a lot of fun playing with this action. I am working on learning actions with Danny's help, now yours and appreciate the effort.

I attached my first attemt using your action. This is my friend "Bubba". (He's a macaw if you can't tell)

Jerry :D :D :D

Hi Jerry,

Thanks for trying out the action. I'm glad it works for you! Be careful, it will be come addictive because they're so easy to make! I'm working on a slightly improved version given some feedback from my sister (who's also using it) and will post it after she's had a chance to try it out. I feel like I'm hogging this thread - I hope that I'm not boring everyone.

I like the idea of making a kaleidescope using pictures of animals. I did one using a picture of my cat, and while it's not one of the "wow"-type kaleidescopes, it kind of sucks you in as you stare at it - more of a subtle approach. ;)

Your bird one looks pretty neat. Are the white lines caused by a cage or something else?

Jeanie

Hi Jeannie

The white lines are his cage. To tell the truth, I really didn't think that I would be that successful on my first try. I just picked a picture at random. I attached it to show how good it came out for a total novice. I will be more selective on future attempts.

I wouldn't worry about hogging the thread. People are like sponges when it comes to things like this. We don't care about threads and such as long as we are learning and having fun..

I will look forward to your future action.

Thanks again
Jerry:D

I can't use it ... Snif....

PS 5.5....

:bawling:

Since it's gotten rave reviews, would you care to donate it to my Actions thread? :D

Here's the link (http://www.retouchpro.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=2767)

I'm starting go feel like one of those blind guys sitting on the street with a tin cup...

"Hey buddy, can you spare an Action??"

Jak,

I haven't found the time yet, but hopefully in the next couple of days, I'll load PS5 on my husband's computer and redo the action for the earlier versions of PS. Then you'll be able to play too! ;)

And, I WILL donate the action to the action thread just as soon as it's "stable". I'm still getting feedback on how to make it better, so I want to wait until the "final version" is out. ;)

Jeanie

SJM, I plan to work on a "readme" file to go along with the action tonight and will post when I get it done. My sister had never even heard of an action until I sent mine to her with a long e-mail on how to run it. She was hooked in literally minutes! ;) So, all is not lost - if you wait a few hours, I'll get you some instructions that can't fail. ;) (But if they do, I hope you'll give me some feedback! I really want to make this as fool-proof as possible.)

Jeanie

I've been checking it out. Seems to work just fine. I run a levels and sharpen after all is done.

Such fun!
:wavey:

Very cool BK!! :bigthmb:

Yes, I've also noticed that sharpening helps to make the kaleidescope jump off the page. I also use levels/curves/saturation/etc. to increase the "pop".

Also, I've taken to filling the background layer (left over at the end of the action) with a color I select from the image - to make a mat of sorts. Also, sometimes I add an inner shadow and outer glow (both at low opacities) to add a little depth to the final version.

Jeanie

OK, here's the latest verion of the action - plus a "readme" file to help those who aren't familiar with actions. (I sure wasn't until just a few weeks ago!) My sister reports that she is getting a slight error in PS6, but she ignores it and it seems to run just fine. I'll try to figure that out tonight on my mother's computer (she's also running PS6). And I know I still have to come up with a PS5 version - that will have to be tomorrow. :(

I apologize for all of these versions. I'm pretty much learning as I go - sorry to drag the rest of you through it.

Jeanie

P.S. I'm not really sure which version I attached to this post, so I deleted it. Please see this post (http://www.retouchpro.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&postid=22053#post22053) for the latest version.

SJM - the *.atn should look like gibberish if you try to look at it in Notepad or some other text editor - it's not a text file. Do you mean it looks like gibberish when you load it into the actions palette? I honestly don't know if an action created in the Windows version of PS works on a Mac. Does anyone else know? If not, you may have to recreate it from the action text file that I've attached. This allows you to view all of the steps, but won't load in the actions palette that I'm aware of.

Looking at what I sent earlier - not even sure I sent the correct version. (I apologize again for making this so difficult and confusing.) So, here is everything again including a text version of the action.
Jeanie

IT WORKS on my MAC!

Thanks Jeannie

I just downloaded v.4 and ran it on ps 7.0. It runs smooth as silk. Your new transform feature is really helpful and allows many variations of one picture. I've been firing thru kleidoscopes at a break neck pace looking for "that special one". When I get it I will post it.

In your text notes you mention using "outer glow" and "inner shadow". Are these filters or must you construct these effects.

I am having a good time with this thanks to your efforts.

Thanks again
Jerry :D

YEAH SJM!!! :D :D I'm so glad you finally got it to work! The kaleidescope looks GREAT! :bigthmb:

Jerry, I'm glad you like v.4 - thanks for that feedback. The "inner shadow" and "outer glow" are layer styles (Layer->Layer Style), so you'll want to have the kaleidescope layer selected when you apply the styles. (Feel free to try other effects too - I'm playing around with emboss to see if anything interesting comes from that.)

Have fun! :)

Jeanie

I know this is off topic ... but I'm worried about you Jeanie. What are the reports like about the fire? Will you have to evacuatate?

Lisa

Hey Lisa!

Jeanie's got a thread called Wild Fires (http://www.retouchpro.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=2879&highlight=fire%2A) over in the Salon you might check out. Her last post said the wind had changed, the fire was moving back on itself and there was a 30% chance of thunderstorms. That was a couple of days ago. Maybe when she wakes up and gets online, she'll post us an update...

Thanks Jak - I'll go over and check to the salon and check it out!

Lisa

Hi Jeannie

After playing with your action, I came up with this kleidescope. I started with a macro picture of a silk flower arrangement and used several layer styles including outer glow and texture and satin (I think). I could picture these matted and framed at an art show at a large size.

Thanks
Jerry :D

Jerry, that's absolutely beautiful!! :D Great job! I like how you took the kaleidescope "further" by adding some filters. Very nice effect. Yes, I can definitely see that matted and framed! :bigthmb:
Jeanie

I have both versions of your action, and the V4 leaves a white line (PS7) in the shape of an X on my images where the "older" version doesn't. Thought you might like to know...
:wavey:

Hmmm - thanks for the feedback BK. Are you sure that your image is filling the wedge outline completely? I've seen that effect when the wedge isn't completely filled. I haven't run into the problem otherwise, but that doesn't mean it's not happening in your case. Please check the positioning of your image within the wedge - and if that's not the problem, I'll see if I can figure out what else it might be.
Jeanie

Jerry,

I love the finished image. I could definitely see all of these kaleidoscope images in an art show, and what a great booth it would be!

Jeanie,

Looks like you have created a winner of an action!

-T :)

Jerry... Ditto Jeanie's comments on this one. .REALLY awesome.

Can you tell us how did you created the outside border? That adds a lot of quality.

~DannyR~

Originally posted by jeaniesa
Hmmm - thanks for the feedback BK. Are you sure that your image is filling the wedge outline completely? I've seen that effect when the wedge isn't completely filled. I haven't run into the problem otherwise, but that doesn't mean it's not happening in your case. Please check the positioning of your image within the wedge - and if that's not the problem, I'll see if I can figure out what else it might be.
Jeanie
Oh yeahhh...I did it several times, filling the image area completely. Maybe its a Mac thing. I wouldn't worry about it...I'm using the "old" version whenever I want to make one of these, and it works fine!
:wavey:

Hi Folks

Thanks for all of the nice comments. The effects you get with this action are really cool but this final picture was trial and error. I never used layer styles before and this is a combination of three layer styles. I don't know the exact slider numbers. They don't seem to be recorded when I reopen the layer styles.

Danny, these are the steps I used.

I applied an outer glow layer style to the kleidescope layer. I believe the setting was soft.

I applied "bevel & emboss" with texture checked to the background layer.

I applied "satin" to the background layer.

This is the cool part. The original kleidescope was 2400 X 2400 pixels. The original picture was high quality on a 4 megapixel camera.

In order to upload it on RP I had to reduce the size to 490 X 490. When I reduced the size, the texture opened up to that large size , The outer glow became wide and soft and the picture took a whole new look. I liked it so much better than the sharper version.

I guess sometimes you need a little luck..

Thanks
Jerry


:D

Meow...
:wavey:

Blacknight - I love "catastrophie"! Those eyes are mesmerizing.
:cat:

VERY cool BK!! :D I tried something similar with one of my cat photos, but it didn't come one nearly as well as yours! (You'll notice I didn't post that one. ;) ) Similar effect though - the longer you stare at it the more you see.

Jeanie

BK - I ran and re-ran the action on my PC and can't come up with the lines you're seeing. So, perhaps it IS a Mac problem? SJM - you run a Mac too, right? Have you run into the problem with a "cross" in your kaleidescope with V4 of my action?

The only other thing I can suggest is that you re-record the step where the flipped copy of the first wedge is moved into place. That is the step that must be off - so I would just try to record it again. If you can't figure out where in the action it is by looking at the steps, then set the playback mode to pause 2-3 seconds between each step, then stop the action when it gets to that point. Delete the step causing the problem and re-record moving the flipped layer into place yourself.

Or, just keep using the previous version if you're happy with it. ;)

Jeanie

Glad you like my kitty. Her name is Pat. She's a cutie, huh!

As far as the action is concerned, I am using the older version. It works well. One question though - on the new version I thought I noticed guides at an angle. If they were, how did you do that?
:wavey:

BK - yes, the guides at an angle were the whole purpose for v4. If you look at the text file I sent as part of the zip file for that version, you'll see the steps I take. I have to make the "wedge guide" every time. Essentially, I used the magic wand to select a gray section from the "eighths.gif" file. Then Selections->Modify->Border 4 pizels. New layer via copy. Fill with blue, preserving transparency. Then I went back to the photo/image and dragged it to the eighths.gif image, then moved the photo layer under the blue wedge layer. That's it. (Oh, and once the user has tranformed the photo into place, the action deletes the wedge layer.)

I had to go through all of these steps because the guides can only be horizontal or vertical. So, the "guides" at an angle aren't really guides at all - just a layer with transparency. Perhaps there is an easier way to do it, but my mind doesn't always take the most elegant path. ;)

Jeanie

I'm not seeing any lines with my MAC. I'm using PS 7 and OSX on a G4.

this is my gereatric kitty, Margaret. She will be 18 this summer.

Those blue eyes!! Wow! :)

Thanks for the feedback on the lines.

Jeanie

I've been testing Jeanie's very cool kaleidoscope "engine" and it works great! Just thought I'd post my first effort.

Hey Jak - that's really cool! :D It looks like a weaving or embroidered piece of some sort - am I right? I love how you gave texture to the outer mat to look give a similar feel to the kaleidescope.
Jeanie

Cool! I was going for the embroidered silk pillow look... :)

It started out it's life as a picture of my garden... lol

NO WAY!! :D OK - how'd you do it? Inquiring minds are dying to know. ;)
Jeanie

Jak

That is really cool. I'm glad you got the action running on your machine. Dido on waiting to hear how you did your effect.

Jerry :D

Let's see if I can remember...

1. Ran Kaleidescope action 3 times, cropped each version before running action on it again.

2. On step 4, pasted a feathered version of step 2 into center of the pattern

3. Made a new layer and used the diamond gradient tool with green & tan chosen from pattern

4. Ran cracquelure on gradient layer and copied. Set blending mode to ??. (can't remember for sure which blending mode I used)

5. Ran drop shadow and bevel & emboss on pattern.

6. Ran dry brush on copy of gradient layer and set to dissolve

7. Ran texturizer (sandstone) twice on kaleidescope layer and set blending to multiply (?)

8. Added yellow border and ran cracquelure on it

I was just playing without keeping track of what I did, so I just can't quite remember which blending modes I used on which layers...

That is just awesome. Brilliant "play" if you ask me! :)
Jeanie

I made another one... :D

This is so fun! I'm getting absolutely nothing productive accomplished...

Originally posted by Jakaleena
I'm getting absolutely nothing productive accomplished...

That's the way life should always be! :D

This thread is really cool! I can't wait to try out this action. I have really enjoyed seeing everyone's work on here!

Excuse me, ma'am - take your hands off the keyboard and step away from the computer, you have gone too far this time! :tongue:

WOW - that is SO COOL Jak! :D

Hey - can you do me a favor? What is the dpi of your resulting kaleidescope? I think I'm going crazy. I save the eighths.gif file as 8" 300dpi and when I open it in PS7 again, it's 33.33" 72dpi. Argh! I was just about to post the action for all versions of PS when I noticed this slight glitch. If this is how GIF behaves (though I've never noticed it before - perhaps someone can clue me in as to why it's doing this?), then I have to add a step to the action to change the resulting file size back to 8" 300dpi. :(

Jeanie

Mine does the same thing, but I wouldn't worry about it.

If you go to resize and turn off resample, you can change the res back and forth between 72 and 300 and you'll see what I mean. It's just 2 different ways of saying exactly the same thing.


8 x 300 = 2400 pixels

33.33 x 72 = 2399.76 pixels

It's all about the total number of pixels....

i just love all the beautiful kalidescopes that have been created and displayed here. now i'm curious how i might change the 8 slices into 6, or 12.

would it be as simple as creating a new template and adding more steps. how would i begin?

Jak,
I'm aware the total number of pixels is the same, but since I say in the "intro" that it creates an 8" 300dpi kaleidescope, if someone happens not to check the size and just goes to print it, they will be disappointed (to say the least.) (Having been a software developer for a number of years, I can guarantee this.) So, I'll just add a step at the end of the action that ensures the dpi is 300 and that will produce an 8" printed image.

SJM,
I still have a dream of creating a kaleidescope with 10 and 12 slices. I hadn't thought of 6, but that would work too. The problem with the different PS versions has delayed me a bit though. :( I've already got the templates created for 10 and 12.

In general, yes. It would be as simple as creating a new template and adding new steps. But it would probably be easiest if the whole action is recorded from scratch, because the rotation of the different sized segments will be dependent on their size - so you wouldn't be able to use the rotations/flips of the current action.

If you want to try making an action - or if you just want a copy of the templates I've already done - feel free to e-mail me.

Jeanie

Jak - your Dream Catcher is wonderful -- lovely image and lovely poem.

I agree with CJ Jak. Love the dream catcher. I've been struggling with that action to make some of my own but for some reason it doesn't work smoothly for me as it does for you all. After playing around with it, I have to do several of the first steps manually then pick it up from where I transform the image to fit the upper quadrant. After everyone seemed to do so well with it and make such beautiful images, I was feeling like an idiot not being able to generate a thing. :D Nothing new there I guess.
DJ

DJ - please don't feel like an idiot. There's just as much chance that it's the action and not the "driver" that's causing the problem. Just wish I could be sitting right next to you to see what it's doing.

In any case, I have FINALLY created this action for versions PS5 to PS7 and zipped them all together. Perhaps you can try downloading this "new one" (though it may not be much different than the one you have) and see if it works for you.

Jeanie

Thanks Jeanie,
I'll give it a try. What happens to me is I open the image then open the 8ths gif. when prompted. Next thing you know it duplicates the image and throws out the 8ths gif so I'm left with 2 copies of the image and some cross guides on one. If I switch the images I get the 8ths gif with another 8ths layer on top of it. Or sometimes I get the image on the bottom with the 8ths gif as Layer 1. So what I am having to do is manually duplicate the image and delete the original then on the 8ths gif I change to RGB mode and then let the action put the guides on it and I then select all and copy the image and then activate the 8ths gif and pick up the action at the paste command. It usually goes ok from there.

It took awhile to figure all that out. I don't know why it's working so well for everyone else but I will give this new one I try when I get a chance.
DJ

:lol:! Sorry to laugh DJ, but that's quite a description of the problem! ;)

OK - try the new version, though I'm not sure that will change anything since I didn't really change that part of the action at all. It is obviously getting confused over which image is which. Very strange. If nothing changes with the new action, then I would recommend re-recording those steps which aren't working for you. Perhaps start by simply recording the opening of the eighths.gif file so that you don't do it manually and see if that helps at all. If not, then I would change the playback options to delay for 2-3 seconds so you can see exactly which steps are causing the problem. Then stop the action after the problem step, delete it, back up and re-record. Sorry to put all that on you to make the changes, but I'm not sure how else to ensure that it will run on your machine!

Has anyone else run into a similar problem to DJ?

Jeanie

Nope. The one you sent me works just beautifully! The only things I have to do are open the 8ths image and then free transform my target image. Then I just sit back and watch it make something really pretty that I get to take all of the credit for...! :lol:

Anyone remember a commercial for a woman making Rice Crispy Treats, and she tosses flour on her own face before exiting the kitchen to make it look as though she actully put some effort into them...

I feel like her.

Thank you very much, Jeanie, for all of the hard work you've put into these actions!

That's ok Jeanie. I can't figure out why it thinks that previous image is the 8ths gif and not the image I just duplicated from but I can handle doing it by hand that far it's the rest of the stuff that would get involved if I had to work through the whole thing. Eventually I will replace the first few steps to match my screwed up version of PS and all will be right with the world. :D I'm actually amazed I figured it out. There were some pretty wierd things going on to work through.

Jak
That commercial does not depict how I experienced this action. :D Quit bragging. :D No one likes someone who breezes through while they're tearing thier hairs out. :lol:
DJ

Jeanie, thanks so much for the new action versions! I hadn't had any success using the other versions, and I still had trouble using the new version for PS6, but I finally figured out that I wasn't resizing and placing the image properly (it left a big white cross in the center) -- after I figured out how to better place the image, your action automatically created a full kaleidoscope. It'll take me some time to figure out which images will work well as kaleidoscopes, but at least I finally was able to make one! :)

This is an Arabian horse performing in the "Native Costume" class at the horse show.

Eureka!!! I think I have figured out what's going wrong!!!
For some reason I decided to try the action out in PS 6 and low and behold it works beautifully. Which got me to thinking about the differences. I believe it was how I was opening the files. In 6 I had no choice but to open via File > Open where as in 7 I just go to the browser and drag and drop. That evidently has some impact on how events occur. When I did File > Open in 7 all went perfectly. I think if you use the browser and double click instead of drag and drop it should work ok. For some reason double click puts them in order one on top of the other where as drag and drop puts them behind the first dragged file.

I feel vindicated!!!! I'm not stupid!!! (Anymore) :lol: Just thought I would pass this on incase others experienced the same problem.

By the way, looks great CJ.
DJ

Jak - I'm glad the action is working so well for you! Makes my effort worth it to see the beautiful creations that you (and everyone) is making! :)

CJ - Sorry to not be clear about the fact that your image must completely fill the wedge outline. Otherwise, you'll get that cross. (Although, I have to say - it can produce some intersting results when you take that result and make another kaleidescope from it. See my attachment - of my nephew at a swimming lesson. ;) ) Your kaleidescope looks really neat. One little suggestion - you might try a levels adjustment to lighten it up a bit and make it "pop" more. I'd love to see some more kaleidesopes from the Arabian horses - I have a feeling some of them could be really neat! ;)

DJ- THANK YOU for persisting and figuring out what the problem was! That is valuable information to know and I've included it in the readme file. (FWIW, it is not possible to record drag & drop in an action either. I had to copy/paste instead.)

A little more explanation on this kaleidescope. My sister is really into scrapbooking (no she doesn't cut up old family photos) and apparently kaleidescopes are pretty big in the scrapbooking world to make a "people photo" more interesting for a "cover page" or as a "border" around a photo. The way scrapbookers make kaleidescopes is by getting 8 copies of the same photo and cutting/pasting them (literally). So, my sister thinks this might be an interesting "service" to provide for scrapbookers. In any case, with that background in mind, my sister made some kaleidescopes of my nephew - but in her beginning stages (which I think we've all been through with these ;) ), she forgot to completely fill the wedge and created a kaleidescope with "the cross". I took that further and made another kaleidescope from that and was pleased to see how the lines turned out.

BTW - for anyone doing kaleidescopes of people, you have to be really careful how the body parts are cropped because you can get some "interesting" effects in the kaleidescope. ;)

Jeanie

OK - I've created actions for 6-, 10- and 12-segment kaleidescopes as well. I've included all of the actions in the same action file, but due to the 100KB file limitation, I've had to split the zip files into separate kaleidescopes because of the *.gif files that are needed to create the wedge selections. So, here's the first one - the 6-segment.

Jeanie

10-segment kaleidescope.

12-segment kaleidescope

I am now DONE creating these actions - unless of course someone finds a problem. (Please do let me know if you fid a problem!) I've decided it's a lot more fun to USE these actions than to CREATE them! ;)

BTW - you'll notice that I have these labeled as v5. The 8-segment action has not changed and is included in the action file anyway. I just didn't see a need to create another zip file containing the *.gif file which you already have if you've downloaded v4.

Have fun!

Jeanie

Jeanie,

Thanks for all your hard work. I can't wait to try out the new versions!

-T

Thanks Jeanie

I just downloaded the three additional kleidescope actions that you developed. Can't wait to experiment with them.

Let the experimenting begin
Jerry :D

T & Jerry, I hope you'll post some of your creations! ;)

Jeanie

Thanks alot Jeanie. Now that I'm on the right track I can't wait to use them. Hey have you added these to Jaks Thread on Actions? They should be listed there as well. You sure worked hard to create some very impressive actions for us. I love how they turn out. It's so fun to watch them and guess what they will look like when done. I never visualize them a beautiful as they really turn out. Can't wait to see how the others work.
DJ

Yes, I've posted all of them the Jak's thread. Hope to see some of your creations soon! ;) I sent them to my mother as well and now instead of playing a game of solitaire before bed, she makes a kaleidescope. :D These things are addictive!

Jeanie

I'll see what I can do. I've made several but nothing as impressive as what's been displayed so far.
DJ

This was one of the first ones I tried using one of the stock photos out of Photoshop. Its a photo of Peppers and I liked the pattern and colors it produced.
DJ

All right DJ!! :D I see devil's horns in it. (Now don't go analyzing that, OK? ;) )

Try running another kaleidescope action on the one you've produced. You can really go wild on the transform by holding down the CTL key which allows you to move one point at a time making for some wild distortions. I just tried it and came up with a REALLY cool one! :) The image definitely has the color contrast and lines to make a good kaleidescope - sometimes it just takes more than one run through the filter to really jump out at you.

Jeanie

Actually I liked the contrast between the horns and the little green hearts at the point between the horns. And the colors do work great as you said.

I also tried out your other actions. This one was using the 12ths gif and I used a stock PS photo of a shell on a wave marked beach. I really like the pattern it created.
DJ

This is another one using a PS stock photo of a design that reminded me of a partial Spirograph drawing. This one I used the 10th gif on.
DJ

Thought this one turned out kind of neat too. It's a hand with a blue light source behind it. Made a cool kaleidescope image.

Yup, this is addicting. :D Now I will try putting some of the designs through the action and see what comes up.
DJ

Wow DJ - I love that one with the shell - very cool pattern! :) And the "spirograph" one is just too cool! :D

About the "addiction" - my mother called me up this morning and asked me to help her figure out a problem she was having with the kaleidescope action because she couldn't wait until I got there this evening to fix it! :D

Jeanie

Well, that sure is a nice compliment to your hard work. You not only pleased your Mother with a fun action but the rest of us are having a blast with them as well. :D
Hey I did try running them more than once and the patterns are even better than the first. I didn't think that sea shell on sand would be very impressive because of the lack of colors but I was really impressed with it the most I think. It made a beautiful 2nd run also.
DJ

NOT a photo, but it IS a kaleidoscope. For those who have FreeHand this takes about 30 seconds. It is actually a routine that I use to make snowflakes, because in creating these no two will ever be the same.

I exported this and colorized it in Photoshop just for fun. Imagine drawing this with a pencil and then coloring all by hand. HOURS vs. seconds. Amazing.
:wavey:

Great job!! Kind of reminds me of spaghetti and meatballs! I guess I must be hungry ;)

-T

Okay Jeanie,

I played with the 10-slice action and ran it twice. This is what I got.

DJ,

I really love the ones you did. The hand with the blue background is so striking! And the seashell in the sand created such a lovely pattern!

-T

BK - very cool!! :D

T - I love that color combination. Did you play around with the hue? How did you get gold leaves? Beautiful! :D

Jeanie

This was such a fun thread with beautiful samples that I thought I revive it for 2005! :happy:

~T

I thought I'd help TPaul revive an old thread because the result is breathtaking is every post. My determination has resulted in the most fun I've had playing with photos in a long time.

I have to admit that I bent or downright broke the "rules" for creating a kaleidoscope just to see what I could come up with. While the result was not perfectly symetrical, I think it is still beautiful. That one is the purple iris.

The pink one was created from a Rose of Sharon. The other one (with the original shown) is a Bachelor Button.

I didn't discover the action posted by one of the members until I had already done one or two of these little creations. The action runs very smoothly and is very well done. A couple of others I found elsewhere on the net did not work nearly as well. Kudos to the person on this thread who created the action. It does take a lot of the tedious work out of the creator's hands.

Janet

Don't know how I missed this one. WHOOPEEEE!

Kiska, what was the original picture? The result of the kaleidoscope looks almost oriental in my minds eye. I think it is gorgeous.

Bless you, Jeanie, for the actions. This is great fun and so addictive!!
I used the Kaleidoscope 10, just ran the action plain and simple. Thank you.

Janet, thanks so much for the compliment. The original was a photo-art image(pink flowers). The kaleidoscope was done from the manipulated one. I ran the 6kal, 2x, then find edges>overlay, then mosaic?? Not sure. It's great fun to play with.
kiska

ENOUGH! ENOUGH! I need to trash this toy!

Beautiful results everyone! I told you this was a great thread!! :bigthmb:

Gonna throw you to the wolves, TPaul!!!!!! I DO have other things to do!

kiska

I guess I should have put a warning on this thread:
Highly Addictive and Way Too Much Fun! ;)

Ok, one more and then I'll be quiet for a time. Giggle. This is way too fun!

:wavey: Here's something bizarre for you all! Not difficult to recognize the source :lol:

Extremely bizarre! The colors really add to the abstractness. I would have never thought to try a face in the kaleidoscope. Great results!

TPaul - thanks for reviving this addiction for the New Year!

Janet, Jaykita, and Kiska -- before you shake this addiction, keep adding some more of your works -- so lovely to look at!

Here's a tiger from the Out of Africa wildlife park -- as I envision him set in a decorative tile...

Decided to add a giraffe couple also....these lighter pieces would look great as glass art - window decoration, etc. Janet & Jaykita, you both did pieces that would be lovely in glass!

More of the fun I've been having.

The first one is only the center of the kaleidoscope. It looked like a rich gold piece of jewelry. The second is just playing around with a randomly generated pattern.

CJ, the pictures of the tiger and giraffe are wonderful. They truly would make nice tiles.

Janet

Well, CJ, if I MUST!

I really like your lion.

kiska

Here is a link for the 'kaleidoscope kooks':

http://www.glospro.com/class/Jewerly.htm

Janet, Kiska -- those jewelry pieces are terrific!

Guess it's time to just put some pixels on the page and play!

Here's one

Just experimenting...

Quite a bit of post-processing -- (for those who may be just starting out trying the action -- the action creates an interesting starting place for some of us)...

Stupendous CJ. Your eye has let you position the subject right where it needs to be to get maximum benefit; and the editing done afterward really is first rate.

Janet

Thanks, Janet! Of course, I COULD admit now that I only post the "experiments" where the results have turned out to my liking,... but maybe I'll keep that a "secret"... :wink:

I AM having fun using Distort ->Polar Coordinates, and Distort ->Wave, and other filters as well as using the Custom Shapes tool to try different starting points before running the Kaleidoscope action. Since you (Janet) started venturing off the track into non-symmetry, I decided to take some side roads also.

Here's one "starting" image and a post-processed result... Such fun!! Thanks again, TPaul and Janet for reviving this thread!

I was just sitting here waiting for a repairman and unable to start anything important because of that and thought I would do a little meaningless sleuthing.

This particular thread "Kaleidoscope" has 140 replies. That far and away exceeds any other thread in this forum. The next closest is 77 replies to one "Lynda's hope", which was a long time ago. The one after that is 60 replies for a thread titled "Montage".

That's it. Tis just a bit of trivia to brighten our day.

Janet

P.S. Oh, and CJ, I love the way your abstract turned out. More. More.

Aaarrrggghhhhhh!!!!!!

Hello - I just found this forum yesterday doing a Google search for a tutorial of some kind for doing kaleidoscope art. I fussed & played with the concept most of the day yesterday, coming up with some halfway decent samples done manually, but Jeanie's "actions" are brilliant! I'm in danger of becoming totally addicted! Thanks Jeanie .... I think .... ;)

Kiska, how wonderful. This one looks like a needlepoint cushion. Absolutely beautiful.

Welcome BluebirdNut. Please share some of your kaleidoscope addiction with the rest of us.

I am so glad that I revived this thread. Everyone has posted such lovely creations and I love how creative you guys are getting!

CJ - love the lion one and the pixel ones are very arty! You are obviously having fun and have become quite the Kaleidoscope Artist! I really like the one where you experiment with the distort, polar coordinates and wave filters. You could print out quite the note card collection now!

Actually we could print out everyone’s images and have quite the variety of kaleidoscope note cards--perhaps we should start RetouchPro Greeting Cards!

Kudos to everyone and I hope to see more!! :bigthmb:

TPaul -- Jeannie created a software CD based on a refined copy of the action, and has added it to her retouching/restoration business. One target audience is scrapbookers. :)

Wow, it's great to see everyone having fun with kaleidoscopes again! :wavey:

Janet, I absolutely love your off-centered one! And the pinwheel effect (i.e., the one without mirroring the wedges) is always fun too.

jaykita, I'm glad you're having fun with the action. Your kaleidoscope with the blue sky, flowers and butterfly is beautiful. And the one with the face is very intriguing!

kiska, I love the variety of different images you've played with. What fun!

CJ, the tiger and giraffe kaleidoscopes are amazing! And your "experiments" are great!! I'll have to play more with "post-processing". :)

BlueBirdNut, do we get to see any of your kaleidoscopes?? Don't be shy!

T Paul, thanks for reviving this thread. I'm happy to report that I have not stopped making kaleidoscopes since this thread started! I was so inspired, that I started making kaleidoscopes with different shapes and my sister (a scrapbooker) convinced me to offer a service making kaleidoscopes for scrapbookers. (Previously, the only method was to make multiple prints of photos, then use a template to precisely cut them out and glue them onto cardstock in a kaleidoscope shape.) I had so many people ask me if we had a special software, that we decided to do just that!

I've attached some of my favorite kaleidoscopes from the past couple of years. There's a couple others I wanted to share, but I can't find them at the moment. :(

Thanks CJ for letting me know this thread was alive again!

Jeanie

Wow, it's great to see everyone having fun with kaleidoscopes again! :wavey:


Speaking of great, your post was a sight for sore eyes, Jeanie. We miss you! When ya coming back? :)

Your pics are lovely.

~Danny~

Thanks Jeanie. Its an honour to be complimented by you!
I've been inspired once again!

I bow to the masters. :bow: :bow: :bow: , Jeanie, CJ, and Jaykita. These are amazing. My sister-in-law will be honored if I gift her with a kaleidoscope for her scrapbooking. For me, I'll probably use them on greeting cards. What a great thread.

Janet

Jeanie - Glad to hear from you and that you have made good use of your Kaleidoscope action. I bet it is very popular amongst scrapbookers! I love your entries, but the last photo is my favorite. The colors and intricate patterns are very pleasing to the eye. Beautiful work!

Jaykita – another great entry!

Hi Danny! :wavey: If I ever have a life again, I promise I'll be back on a regular basis. My past year has been way too busy and the near future doesn't look much better. I haven't had time for much photo-art and I really miss it! Until then, I try to check in from time to time, but whenever I think I've figure out how to balance my life, it shows me differently. :depressed

jaykita, another beautiful one! No need to bow to anyone! :grin: I find that photos with a shallow depth of field produce some of the most beautiful kaleidoscopes.

Janet, I'm sure your sister would love a kaleidoscope for scrapbooking! FYI, we've found that 8" kaleidoscopes (easily printed on a letter-size printer) work really well when placed on 12x12" cardstock because it leaves room for embellishments and journaling on the scrapbook page. (Of course, if you have a 13" printer, larger kaleidoscopes are great too. :wink: ) And I highly recommend using kaleidoscopes to make cards - I've made tons of them!

Thanks T Paul. We knew the kaleidoscopes would be popular among scrapbookers. What we didn't realize was that it's just as popular among quilters! (Printing the kaleidoscopes on fabric and including as a block in a quilt.) It's been great fun to see everything that people are creating with kaleidoscopes! (Some images attached.)

Jeanie

OK, Jeanie, we want a tutorial in detail. Please Please Please. Those are amazing and very professional. I have so many possibilities for this marvelous creation of yours I can't begin to list them.

Once again as I submit my humble effort, I bow to the masters. :bow: :bow: :bow:

Janet

I found a funky site (http://www.good-tutorials.com/track/2789) with a really different kaleidoscope tutorial. Instead of using the colorize option the writer suggested at the bottom, I added a bit more contrast and a gradient layer. Weird huh?

Yes, those are Christmas lights in the first one.

Are those Christmas lights Janet? Very cool!

I can do tutorials, but I have to warn you they won't come all at once b/c I'm scrambling to get ready for a tradeshow that we signed up for really late, so I'm way behind on everything that I have to do. Do you have a favorite that you want me to start with?

Jeanie

For those of you interested, Jeanie has a web site you might want to check out. It also includes a section on kaleidoscopes, an idea gallery and a site to purchase the kaleidoscope software.

Custom Kaleidoscopes (http://www.lotusflowerimaging.com/kaleidoscopes.htm)

Kaleidoscope Kreator (http://www.kaleidoscopecollections.com/index.htm)

Idea Gallery (http://www.kaleidoscopecollections.com/g_index.htm)

The only high tech equipment I use for kaleidoscopes is Paint Shop Pro. They have a kaleidoscope filter. You can choose the number of "petals" and "orbits," ise ofsets, etc. One click and no coffee filters wasted.

You get different results when you mirror the image, too. I like to add other filters to photos before I do them, then deform the image with various other filters.

Below is one with 20 petals and one orbit, and the other is one with 8 on a mirrored image,

Amy

Jeanie, THANKS A MILLION! You are so creative and do fabulous work. You've really sparked my imagination, wow there's so much i want to do! Thank you all, and Janet, T Paul, for the praise. You all are a great bunch, so creative, so encouraging, and so helpful too. T Paul, i highly appreciate the links to Jeanie's websites.
In case it has escaped your notice, for those who have Corel Painter 8, there's a great feature on creating kaleidoscopes. And very easy to use. Go to the bottom of the layers palette, depress the 2nd button where it says "Dynamic Plug-ins", you'll find - Kaleidoscope, among others.
Have fun!!

Hey, no fair sneaking in an attachment to a post I've already read Janet! :grin: That's an interesting tutorial - I think your gradient layer is a good addition.

I wasn't kidding when I asked what you want a tutorial on. (Focus, I need focus! :dizzy: ) Do you want a tutorial just on some of the digital editing I do after I make the kaleidoscopes? Or do you want details of how I made the cards/scrapbook pages after I printed them out?

I should mention that links that T Paul mentioned are on two different sites because originally I was providing a kaleidoscope service under my photo restoration business. But then I branched off and created a separate business with my sister - hence the two sites. :dizzy:

Amy, playing with the kaleidoscope feature in PSP is a lot of fun. Your kaleidoscopes are beautiful - I love the colors! The thing about the PSP filter is that it doesn't allow you to see what portion of the photo is being used for the kaleidoscope, plus it distorts the original image by "pulling" it out from the center. That doesn't work too well when you want to make a kaleidoscope with people in it (as many people do for scrapbooking.) But there's no doubt the PSP filter makes beautiful images - you just can't "predict" them (at least I've never figured out how to.) :)

jaykita, I'm so happy you're inspired! I'd love to see some of the things you make! :pleased:

I never knew that Painter had that feature! That's really fun - almost like a "real" kaleidoscope!!

Jeanie

Just what this thread needs... More kaleidoscope Photoshop actions!

Click here. (http://www.tstonramp.com/~niemand/pspics/tammy's%20kaleidoscope.atn)

Have fun. :)

Tammy's at it again... Here's a link to v2 of her awesome Photoshop action.

Click HERE (http://www.tstonramp.com/~niemand/pspics/Tammy's%20Kaleidoscope%20V2.atn).

Here's some more post-processed k-scopes; used Tammy's V2 action for the first one -- thanks, Danny.

#1
After using the action, I selected a color that I didn't care for, copied it to another layer and re-colored it. Then I added noise and texture to some other areas, enlarged the canvas and added some color strokes around the edges of the circular area, and colored/textured the background.

#2
Made some colored swatches on a white canvas, ran Tammy's action and then ran Jeannie's action on that result. Then added some elements from the first result, copied them and centered them on the new one and then ran the Spherize filter. Then I processed different areas for color, etc. I'm having too much fun to keep track, and have no idea of what I'm going to do until I do it -- have the day off from work and kaleidoscopes to play with -- yippee!!

#3
Worked a different selection from the colored swatches,....etc., etc.....

#4
A photo of a bird with blue plumage -- the action kept the feathery look quite nicely, I think!

Seems an appropriate day to celebrate the kaleidoscope of colors in all of us surrounded by the earth and sky.

I've been playing with the different actions and methods, and combining them with some tweaks of my own. I've already determined that I'm probably going to buy a new external hard drive to hold all of my new pieces or artwork!

Anyway, I thought I'd post just a few of them

#1 is the CN tower in Toronto -- pretty basic, but I thought it was interesting
#2 is a Tree Swallow nest
With #3, the flower in the photo filled the frame to such an extent that I couldn't fit much of it into the wedge, no matter how I resized and rotated it. So I experimented with creating a larger background layer with some artistic effects applied to it, and positioning the photo itself in one corner of that layer, then applying the Kaleidoscope action to it. I thought the result was interesting.

Jeanie, you asked what we'd like to see tutorials on -- I for one would like to see some ideas on what to do with the kaleidoscopes after they're created to make some of those interesting scrapbook pages!

It's been so long since I last used the Kscope in PSP and am interested in a resurgence of interest here in them. I'm in the middle of doing Scrapbook LO's for my DIL and have 6 completed. I will definitely try a Kscope feature one next. PSP8 has a nice selection of selection shapes bundled but you can of course create your own selection shapes and use them. Here are a few samples below. Original image top left. I used the same Kscope setting for each shape just for this exercise. The circle shape I buttonized. The square one I cut out a centre piece and used it as a frame. Thanks for sharing and I hope you find something useful from this too.

Hello - I just found this forum yesterday doing a Google search for a tutorial of some kind for doing kaleidoscope art. I fussed & played with the concept most of the day yesterday, coming up with some halfway decent samples done manually, but Jeanie's "actions" are brilliant! I'm in danger of becoming totally addicted! Thanks Jeanie .... I think .... ;)
Bluebird...

In the flurry of recent activity in this thread I missed your first two posts. Glad you found us. A+ in your kaleidoscope interpretations.

Glad you're having fun and a big, albeit belated, W*E*L*C*O*M*E.

~Danny~

PSP8's kaleidoscope variations can make some really pretty abstracts. I took a photo of a rather uninteresting tea cup, did Topography filter default, did kaleidoscope with 16 petals on default, then rand FP flexify with equirectangular, equirectangular and screen glue.

Fun to do.

Amy

Fun to do,

AND

Fun to see!!

I like it very much!

I'm trying out some IR (infra-red ) photos in my back yard, and took a boring shot and turned it into a lovely kaleidoscope. (Tammy's action)

Image 1 -- k-scope

Image 2 -- post processed image -- channel mixer correction after masking foliage

Ditto CJ, did the same yesterday...also in the garden but didn't like my results at all. Good for you being so innovative and creative however with yours. Well done. Looks lacy too!

Interesting CJ, thanks for showing what you did first! :thumbsup:

p.s. Just had a thought about a filter I used last year to design some lacy doillies...it's called Make-a-Flake from Xero Filters.

http://www.xero-graphics.co.uk/xero/christmas2002.htm

It may interest K-scope fans?

Neve -- let's both get OUT of the yard and try some IR on something scenic with big expanses of sky, foliage, and other things to show off the IR effect! It's hard to get myself away from the stuff that I'm supposed to be doing to do photography...

I'm on my way to join you. :wink: ..I've only had a dig cam a short while but keen to explore IR further for certain. I only have one filter so far and need to find out about others I should have for this type of photography.

Oh no you don't. The last thing I need is another kaleidoscope plugin or action. I've become so addicted to them that I'm turning everything into circles.


Seriously, thanks Neve. I'm going to have lots more fun now.

Janet

This k...scope effect on a dream catcher was done with the Sinedots Filter:-

http://moonsdesigns.com/tutorials/sinedot2/dreamcatcher.html

Filter from here:-

http://www.philipp-spoeth.de/

p.s. Just had a thought about a filter I used last year to design some lacy doillies...it's called Make-a-Flake from Xero Filters.

http://www.xero-graphics.co.uk/xero/christmas2002.htm

It may interest K-scope fans?


Omigosh, a new toy to play with!! :classic: another reason to stay up late! :tired:


I'll take a look at the Sinedots filter also.
Many thanks, Neve

If you're happy CJ so am I.... :wavey: :)

Being a crochet afficianado, as well as a collector of antique crochet doilies, I gave this a shot.

Start with the first image, then select the scribbles and run sculpture on it with an ecru color light. This makes it look like ecru crochet cord. Then run the image through PSP8 kaliedoscope with 20 petals, then change the parameters other than petals, just ever so slightly and run again. Voila! A doily my grandmother would have been proud of.

Amy

Oh man Amy. I have no adjectives for your doily. My grandmother would also have been very proud of that one. I'm a handspinner. I would love to have a pattern like that to use for my handspun cotton. WOW

Janet

Agh...you clever person Amy. I've done quite a bit of this type of crochet and this is so very real looking. Well done. :bigthmb:

One more. This one was done with old barn wood.

Janet -- I love this one a lot! I wish it were a real piece of wood that could be hung on my wall. To me, it seems both contemporary and rustic -- mixed beautifully.

:nod: :pleased:

I'm so happy to see so much interest in mirroring and kaleidoscoping. I spend a lot of time making these images, and they are so much fun, and the results are often better than the original. Here are some of my early ones. The last one suggests "Creation" to me.

I used to have an entire gallery online of fractals and mirrored images.

Amy

CJ, coming from you, your comments mean a lot. The stuff put come up with is so well done.

Amy, very, very nice. I love old looking jewelry. Both 2 and 3 suggest that to me. I'd be proud to wear either. What were the original images?

Janet

The first image was a grapevine, the second a car grille, and the third yellow rubber gloves.

Thanks

Amy

Found one at Adobe Studio Exchange

1. Go to this thread: http://www.retouchpro.com/forums/showthread.php?t=2653

2. Search on "kaleidoscopic"

Wow; surprised this thread stopped at 2005. Anyway, I started with Apophis (needed a graphic or picture, so just decided to generate one this time). I then ran Mehdi's Kaleidoscope filter and then small tiled it. Simple. :)

Gorgeous!! This is a sample of why we fell in love with the Kaleidoscopes in 2002. Wonderful -- would make a fantastic wall hanging/rug/window art!

i like that, lk. great detail in there.

kaleidoscopes filters, plugins and programs have come a long ways. some of things folks were doing by hand work and combinations of things can be done in one or two steps now.

here's a rose i ran through a filter forge filter that uses a kaleidoscope with a 'stone's component and a few other things.

and here's another variation...

and, let's do one more...

Those are quite cool Craig. :)

thanks, lk.

the fascinating thing is, you can move one slider in a kaleidoscope filter and get a totally new look. load a different image and get another new look. quite fun :)

Thought I would take Bara to a kaleitastrophie. lol

....creep you out. :lmao:

Just combining Droste with Mehdi's Kaleidoscope. :)

i like that second one, lk. nice pattern.

here's one from a filter forge filter. this was all done in FF with no imported image used.

I'm glad this thread was revived. It is one of my favorite. I like seeing all of the creative patterns.

Lyle, your last entry looks as if it could be an exotic tile in the middle east.

Craig, I'd love to see the black and white one in color, maybe neons. Wouldn't that be wild?

This one is a study in curves. I liked the bold, funky colors. Enjoy.

Janet

janet,

i love that one! very nice. reminds me a bit of those dream catchers.

and interesting that you asked me about color on that rendition. the filter started out as a black and white, but is now color as well. i dont have one of that exact one in color, but here's a similar one done with the same filter.